Snowblind
by KingRiles
Summary: Two barn gems find out what exactly a 'snowstorm' is and why Peridot's tablet won't shut up about it.


**Disclaimer,** I don't own Steven Universe.

* * *

The days had grown significantly duller in colour, not to mention blighted by cold winds that would've made anyone hitch up their collars and tug on their thickest pair of gloves to protect themselves.

But, again, the temperature never really did frighten Gems, now did it?

Lapis flew above the once-luscious fields, where corn stalks loomed, blackened by forces Peridot had described as "seasonal". Now that the ocean gem thought about it, it reminded her of when Steven took her out into the woods and showed her how leaves changed because of earth's shifting seasons.

 _The leaves looked a lot nicer than these, though,_ Lapis remarked to herself, a small grimace finding its way onto her lips.

The grass looked bleak, like something had come and sucked all the life out of the soil where it sprouted from. There were even empty patches where it was just dirt, hardened by the cold and looking rather unwelcoming.

A prompt dip of watery wings and Lapis soared back over the expanse of the dead cornfield and onto roof of the barn, investigating the weird wintry phenomenon that plagued their farm.

That was, of course, before her bare feet made contact with the steel shingles that were way too slippery to keep her upright.

With a rather undignified yelp Lapis slid down the barn roof, stopped only by the grey armchair tucked beside the silo jutting out from the side of the barn. She placed a supportive arm on the fabric, surprised to find it stiffened with some sort of crystallized substance. She ran her slim blue hands experimentally over the frosty sheen before retracting it to inspect the frost. "Huh."

" _ **LAPIS** **!**_ "

Even though she knew she should've practically been numb to these outbursts by now, Lapis was startled enough to slide down the rest of the roof and off the edge, catching herself only with her wings as Peridot, with Veggie Head trailing close behind, rushed out of the barn. Her tablet was in hand, flashing over the forum she'd been browsing with a red message entitled: _Blizzard Warning_. Oddly enough, the tablet was emanating a high, sporadic buzzing type sound.

"Lapis! My tablet's been going off for the past minute and I've just about had- _hnn._ " She paused, evidently trying to compose herself before another alarm erupted from the tablet speaker. " _Ragh_! Enough!"

She promptly tapped the power button and turned the device off. Veggie Head rushed around Peridot's small legs and hastened excitedly to Lapis. Said gem gladly dropped back to earth to let their pet jump up into her arms.

"What did that message mean?" Lapis asked, padding over to the smaller gem. Her hand ran thoughtfully over the pumpkin's hard body, stopping only to support him more thoroughly as one arm reached out to Peridot's slouching shoulder. ". . It said warning, so. . . "

Peridot's eyes grew wide behind her visor with that vocal revelation, and opened her mouth like she wanted to counter Lapis, but decided against it. "Yeah, you're right," she puffed, turning the tablet back on and beckoning for them to return to the barn in wake of a new gust of wind.

Even though they weren't really bothered by the chilling temperature the gales brought, it wasn't exactly comfortable having your hair and clothes whip about, courtesy of the weather.

Once inside they closed the doors in unison. Lapis draped the sheet over the closed barn doors, sealing away the light seeping in through the cracks, and turned back to see Peridot clambering up onto the loft with a breathless "c'mon, Lapis!"

By the time she scaled the ladder with Veggie Head bundled in her arms, Peridot was busily flicking at her screen, undoubtedly doing research on whatever _blizzard warning_ meant.

She let Veggie Head run free towards Peridot as she finally ascended and made her own way over, plopping down beside the green gem and leaning over to peer at the bright font of her device. "So what's it mean?"

Her inquiry was met with a puzzled frown. "I don't know. By definition, a blizzard is a. . . severe snowstorm, high winds, with low visibility. Is a snowstorm like a normal storm?"

"That would explain the clouds," Lapis offered helpfully.

"Yes, it would. . . but a. . _snow_ storm _?_ That doesn't exactly sound like _rain."_

Suddenly the barn doors rattled viciously in wake of a brilliant gust outdoors, making the gems glance anxiously at each other. Even Veggie Head seemed stunned by the bustling, enough to huddle nervously on Lapis' lap and offer a small whimper.

" _Nnngh_. . . Okay, to prevent our home from getting. . _invaded_ by this blizzard, we need to seal all entrances and stock on food, and warmth?" Peridot looked up from the tablet, scrutinizing the covered barn doors. "I already covered them," Lapis murmured thoughtfully. "And we don't really need food."

"Not like we have any left over from Andy, Steven, and Greg!" Mused the green gem, leaning in and resting her shoulder against Lapis'. "And about warmth? We can't get cold."

"Roger."

"So this cloddy snowstorm can't hurt us at all! _Hah_!"

"Then how come the barn's-"

As if to applaud Lapis for stating the obvious, the barn gave a mighty shudder and the sounds of the winds outdoors became ever the more prominent.

Lapis felt Peridot lean a little closer, and she sensed a little shudder come from the smaller gem. "Sounding like _that_?" Said gem tried to finish, sending a concerned look up towards the roof. Lapis only replied with a solemn nod.

The wooden structure around them seemed to heave with effort of deflecting the aggressive phenomenon outside, earning yet another whimper from Veggie Head. Lapis decided she'd had enough. "I'm going to see what it is."

This seemed to rip Peridot out of her weather-induced stupor, promptly snapping out of Lapis' embrace and giving her a ludicrous glare. "Are you completely _cracked_?" She squeaked. "It sounds like the Cluster's emerging again out there!"

"You say that every time there's a storm."

Undeterred, Lapis pried Veggie Head off of her skirt and comfortingly ran a brief hand over his head before setting him beside Peridot. "I'm gonna take a look outside."

Lapis padded over to the loft ladder, smiling knowingly when the familiar " _oof"_ of Peridot probably falling onto the wooden floor sounded. "You coming?" She asked, turning towards her.

"Y-Yes!" The little gem confirmed, brushing off her technician's jumpsuit and scuttering after the taller. "You know, we don't absolutely have to understand what this-" The barn rocked in emphasis. ". . . _Blizzard_."

Lapis hopped down from the loft with a quick surge of her wings, retracting them mirthfully as she watched Peridot scamper down on her own. "I recall someone once telling me that everything's worth discovering here on earth."

"Yeah, well, they sound like a real _clod_!" Peridot countered, a dark blush spreading over her face as she plopped onto the wooden floorboards.

Lapis smirked and rolled her shoulders, reaching over to grab Peridot's hand as she led them closer to the groaning barn doors. "Yeah, she does."

Veggie Head watched timorously from the loft guardrail as both gems pulled aside the makeshift curtain, one with fervor and one with noticeable unease.

"Ready?" Asked Lapis, sharing an expectant glance with Peridot.

". . . No."

"Good enough!"

Together they pried open the barn doors, which proved to be more difficult than it had been only ten minutes ago.

What laid outside had them reeling back in astonishment.

White.

It laid so thickly on the ground directly in front of them and in the hills far beyond their farm. The latter itself was unrecognizable, whatever crops left from the harvest now toppled by thick clumps of some white substance neither of them had ever seen before.

Worse, the same stuff was falling and falling and falling from up above; the clouds were dark and swollen, giving no indication of stopping anytime soon.

It was kind of bewitching, Lapis thought, as she and Peridot in a nearly simultaneous fashion poked their heads out into the elements.

It was like the world was erased: packed beneath this grand blanket of _stuff._ She wondered how it felt.

Looking down proved interesting, as Peridot's eyes had lost their fearful gleam and were instead now alight with fascination.

"Look, Lapis! It's. . it _is_ like rain! It's falling from the sky! And yet, it's not rain!" She paused a moment, before looking up to lock eyes with her barn mate. "Is it?"

Lapis reached out a hand, expecting to feel the same little _pitter-patter_ rain would leave on her blue skin. Instead, it was so, so much gentler, yet the longer her arm remained outside, the more the _snow_ seemed to collect on it.

"No, but, it looks a little like it. is all. How do you think it feels?"

"Only one way to find out!"

Peridot rushed out from underneath Lapis, barreling into the rough foot of snow head-first. Quite literally, head-first. She ended up tripping over the compacted powder and ended up sinking gem-first into the stuff, legs thrashing with - what Lapis was assuming - indignation and surprise.

" _ **GAHH**_! _Lapis, **help!** I think it's trying to consume me!_ " Came the muffled outcry.

Frankly she wasn't sure whether to be concerned or amused. She chose to be a little bit of both as she hastily shuffled over, her speed impeded by the thick snow that wrapped hungrily around her ankles as she hoisted Peridot out of the heap and inspected her for wounds. "You look fine."

"Oh, thank the stars!" Wheezed Peridot, dramatically curling her arms around Lapis before sending the snow a seething glance.

"How is this possible?" The smaller gem huffed, wrapping one arm around Lapis' neck whilst gesturing to the white mass around them. "The sheer tininess of the stuff coming from the sky makes it nearly impossible to collect like this! It's hardly bigger than a speck of dust!"

Lapis hummed in absentminded agreement, crouching enough to reach an arm out to palm a bit of the snow. She pulled back, still holding Peridot as she kneaded the stuff. To her surprise, it seemed to melt in her palm, little rivulets of. . . was that. . _water_?. . . running through her fingers.

With a curious, albeit a little devious, expression, she shook the slush of her palm and patted Peridot's pale yellow shock of hair, finding it damp. "Peridot, it's _water_!"

" _Neh?_ "

"The snow! It's. . some kind of water!"

Peridot blinked at Lapis as though cracked, before beckoning to be put down to investigate this information herself. Lapis elatedly obliged and went on her own, mustering up the mental will to bend water to her bidding, but was crestfallen to find that only the diminutive amount of water she'd created by fondling the stuff came to float before her.

"I guess it's too far from its water to listen to me though."

She turned back to see Peridot, up to her knees in snow. Despite this she was determinedly sifting through the snow, balling it up in her hands and excitedly scampering back over to the ocean gem. "It's even malleable!" She froze, giving the expression she always did upon getting an idea. " _ **Oh!** Oh, oh!_ Hold on! I have an idea!"

Lapis herself bent down to scoop up a handful of the stuff like before, this time cupping it in both as she rolled it into a ball. She hardly noticed the stuff collecting on her shoulders, though when it grew a little irritable she simply shook it off.

She heard scuffling and twisted. Peridot was busily pushing the snow into a mound, growing taller with every scoop. Little flecks of the stuff speckled her hair, and with how bristly the stuff was it wasn't a surprise to see it started to gather without Peridot noticing. "What're you doing?" Lapis finally asked.

"I'm- _nyah_ \- building a structure! With how compact this snow is, I bet we could make a whole 'nother _barn_!" As Lapis made her way over, Peridot had begun to shovel snow out from the mound's centre with her hands. "Let me help, then!" The lithe gem chuckled and got down.

The snow clotted in the ripples of the skirt as she tunneled on the side opposite Peridot. She could eventually see through the mound, and reached a hand out to break through the rest.

And coincidentally, so did Peridot.

Their hands met in the middle, clasping over one another as both let out a respective gasp of surprise.

 _"_ ** _Gah!_ ** The snow's grown a hand!"

"Peridot, that's my hand."

"Oh."

Lapis dipped her head and peeked curiously in through the hope the two had made, making out Peridot's flushed face on the opposite end.

They still hadn't let go.

Lapis could feel her own blush start to darken her facial features, and she bit the inside of her cheek as Peridot leaned in slightly.

However the flimsy snow arch the two had created promptly decided to cave in on Peridot's head.

A muffled shriek sounded from the freshly collapsed heap and Lapis snorted, having her hand trapped beneath the powder. And she was still holding Peridot's hand.

Playfully she tugged at it, watching the snow shift as Peridot slowly emerged. But soon the snow let go of her and she flew out, plowing into Lapis with a loud _eep_.

The two seemed to roll together in the snow before they finally slowed into a halt, with Lapis' chest heaving as she bit her lip watching Peridot try to regain her bearings. Soon it seemed to dawn upon them that they were atop one another, and Lapis released the laughter built up within her abdomen with a jovial snort. " _Hahaha_!"

Peridot blinked and gawked at Lapis before she, too, began to laugh. Pawing her way off of Lapis she collapsed down next to her, shoulders touching as they simply laughed and stared up at the falling snow. It seemed to have gotten considerably softer. The snow didn't fall nearly as aggressive as it'd been when they came outside.

A gentle wind tussled the locks on Lapis' forehead and she contentedly looked over to Peridot, staring to the sky with satisfied zeal.

Barking sounded before Lapis felt Peridot deeply gasp next to her. Apparently Veggie Head decided that now, with the weather calmed, would be an amazing time to divebomb the smaller gem's chest.

"O _o-ho-ho_ ," groaned Peridot, wrapping her arms over their pumpkin more as a defense mechanism than anything as she rolled and pushed him onto Lapis. She huffed with amusement as she patted his head. "He sure does have _impeccable_ timing."

Lapis giggled as Veggie Head busily nestled himself between the two, yipping quietly and snuffling delightedly at Peridot's face as she tried to hide it in Lapis' shoulder.

She glanced at her shoulder where Peridot rested her head.

Peridot's skin seemed to glow brighter in contrast to the white powdery blanket below them. She knew that if they stayed out there too long, and didn't move, they'd be buried. But right now, the snow was slow and sweet: so why couldn't their moment be just that, too?

Snow trickled elegantly down around them now, turning the world into a winter wonderland rather than a winter storm.

Lapis lifted the arm she leaned on to wrap it around the smaller gem's shoulder.

"Yeah," she murmured to herself.

She turned her eyes back to the sky and let them slide blissfully shut.

"He really does."

* * *

When Three Gems and a Baby aired, I was wondering, what were Lapis and Peridot up to at the barn? " _I guess I could write something even though I know some others might, too!_ " Shoutout to my girl Lauren for always being super supportive (and constantly texting me asking for updates) with my Lapidot stuff. 3 Seeya next time, guys!


End file.
